Cooking therapy from a former travel nurse

Eating healthier has me eating mostly fish and chicken, but once in a while, you need some meat! I have picked up a few new cooking magazines to give me inspiration and was happy to see a recipe for chipotle rubbed flank steak with a apricot whiskey glaze in my Cuisine Lite Magazine. I grilled the steak on my cast iron grill along with a mushroom medley of portabello, crimini, and baby bella mushrooms. I sliced it thin and made a sandwich using Oroweat Sandwich thins, spinach leaves and an ounce of brie. It was the perfect midnight dinner for my night shift at work, but I’d bet it would work any other time, too.

Of course, I started to photograph it for the blog, but then was in a hurry to finish it up before work and didn’t get a picture of the finished sandwich, but I think the meat speaks for itself.

Total Weight Watchers points: 13

What I used (adapted from the Cuisine Lite recipe)

1 1/2 pound trimmed flank steak (non tenderized)

1/4 cup apricot preserves

3 tablespoons whiskey

1 Tbsp chipotle chili powder (or minced chipotle in adobo)

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1 Tbsp ancho chili powder

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Oroweat sandwich thins

spinach leaves

brie, one ounce per sandwich

Combine whiskey, preserves and chipotle powder (or chipotle chiles), set aside. In a separate bowl combine brown sugar, chili powder, salt and pepper. Rub flank steak with spice/sugar blend until well coated. You will use nearly all of the rub. Grill the flank steak over medium high heat for 3-4 minutes, then turn and grill the opposite side for 3-4 minutes. Brush top side of steak with whiskey sauce and grill two minutes more, then flip and brush the opposite side with glaze and grill two minutes more to caramelize both sides of the steak. Remove from heat and tent with aluminum foil while steak rests. Grill mushrooms over medium-high heat until cooked through. Slice meat thinly across the grain and arange 3 ounces on sandwich bun, top with mushrooms, brie and spinach leaves. Enjoy!

(This is a picture from a previous attempt, I like it better with flank steak that has NOT been run through a tenderizer)

A friend recently asked if I had a recipe for creamy cilantro dressing. Unlike last time, I didn’t tell a lie. I said no and proceeded to look up a recipe online. I tried a couple of different recipes and went with this one. I feel it is a nice, tangy compliment to the beef and not so heavy that it drowns the salad. It is also low carb, so my friends on South Beach can enjoy it and one of my friends even likes it plain, on tortilla chips. (more…)

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